De'Anthony Marquies Thomas (born January 5, 1993) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

and

return specialist A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

who is a free agent. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Oregon Ducks The Oregon Ducks are the College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Oregon, located in Eugene, Oregon, Eugene. The Ducks compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCA ...

and was selected by the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL draft. He also played for the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

Early life

When Thomas was 12 years old, he was a Pop Warner Football star and played for the Crenshaw Bears in

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

's Snoop Youth Football League. Snoop Dogg claims to have given Thomas the nickname "Black Mamba", though ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'' has written that another coach in the league first identified Thomas to Snoop Dogg as the "Black Mamba". Thomas himself prefers the spelling "Black Momba". Thomas graduated from Crenshaw High School in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, where he played

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

, and

under the leadership of coach Robert Garrett. Thomas rushed for 1,299 yards and 18

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

on offense and collected five

interceptions In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team bu ...

on defense while leading Crenshaw (12–2) to its second straight city championship. Regarded as a five-star recruit by '' Rivals.com'', Thomas was listed as the No. 1 athlete prospect in the class of 2011. He played in the 2011 U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Thomas was also a track sprinter, named a 2013

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

All-American as anchor of Oregon's 4x100 relay team. He has a personal best of 10.25 seconds in the 100 meters and 20.39 seconds in the 200 meters. In high school, he won the Los Angeles City Section Championship in the 100m in 2009, and went on to finish 6th in the 100m and 2nd in the 200m at the California state meet. In 2010, he won the LACS championship in both the 100m and 200m, but at the California state meet failed to move past the preliminary rounds in the 100m and finished last in the 200m final. ;Recruiting

College career

Thomas was one of the most decorated prep football players to ever come out of Los Angeles and one of the most sought after recruits of the 2011 recruiting class. It came as a shock when Thomas announced his decision to attend the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

over

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

, which was 10 minutes from where he lived. Coming out of high school, he was the #1 rated defensive back in the 2011 recruiting class but his desire to play offense in college grew over his senior season at Crenshaw High School. On January 29, 2011, Thomas secretly visited Oregon on a recruiting trip and decided to play for the Ducks in

Chip Kelly Charles Edward Kelly (born November 25, 1963) is an American professional American football, football coach who is the offensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He came to prominence as a college foo ...

's blur offense.

2011

Thomas had a standout 2011 season as a true freshman for Oregon. Splitting time between running back and

, as well as returning kickoffs and punts, Thomas amassed 2,235 all-purpose yards and scored 18 total touchdowns, setting a school record for number of touchdowns by a freshman. Thomas was the only player in the 2011

year to amass 400 yards each in rushing, receiving, and returns. He was a co-recipient of the 2011 CFPA Kickoff Returner Trophy and a freshman All-American selection. He led all freshmen with 18 touchdowns. On January 2, 2012, Thomas recorded two touchdowns and 314 all-purpose yards in the Rose Bowl where Oregon won 45–38 over #10

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

. In that game, his 91-yard touchdown run broke the previous Rose Bowl record for the longest run from scrimmage. His only other carry in that game resulted in a 64-yard score, giving him 155 rushing yards on just two carries. The Ducks finished the season 12–2 (8–1 Pac-12) with a #4 final season ranking. He was on many Heisman watch lists ahead of the 2012 season.

2012

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, Thomas continued his role as an all-purpose weapon for the Ducks. He amassed 701 yards rushing, for 11 touchdowns, and another 445 yards receiving, for 5 touchdowns. Thomas continued to return kicks and punts, including a 94-yard opening kickoff return in the 2013 Fiesta Bowl, where Oregon defeated #5 Kansas State 35–17. In total, he recorded 1,757 all-purpose yards and scored 18 touchdowns. Thomas led the

Pac-12 conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level for all sports, and its Co ...

in rushing yards per attempt with 7.6. The Ducks finished the season 12–1 (8–1 Pac-12) with a #2 ranking, putting them in the top five of the final season rankings for the third straight season. Thomas was featured on the cover of ''

'' on September 24, 2012. The headline inside read: "Can't Touch DAT: He's not a RB, a receiver or even a starter, UO's DAT is simply a touchdown waiting to happen."

2013

Entering his junior year, Thomas was a candidate for the Paul Hornung Award, as well as being placed on watchlists for the Doak Walker Award and Heisman Trophy. On September 9, 2013, he was named the Pac-12 offensive player of the week after tying a career-best with three touchdowns (all rushing) at

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. For the season he had a combined eight rushing and one receiving touchdown. On January 5, 2014, Thomas announced he would forgo his senior season and enter the 2014 NFL draft.

Awards and honors

2011 *Pac-12 Co-Offensive Freshman of the Year *Team's Most Outstanding Player Award *All-Pac-12 First-team (Pac-12 Coaches, Phil Steele) *Freshman All-America (Sporting News) *All-Freshman First-team (Phil Steele) *CFPA Kick Returner Performer of the Week (Washington State, USC) 2012 *2nd Team All-America (FOXSportsNEXT.com) *Maxwell Award Semifinalist (College Player of the Year) *Pac-12 All-Conference Honorable Mention (Pac-12 Coaches) 2013 *Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week (Pac-12 Coaches) Sep 9

Professional career

Kansas City Chiefs

2014 season

Thomas was selected by the

in the fourth round (124th overall) of the 2014 NFL draft. On August 7, 2014, Thomas returned a punt 80 yards for a touchdown in the Chiefs' first preseason game. After being drafted, Thomas was expected to play a wide receiver and running back hybrid position in the offense, as well as being the

punt returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punt (gridiron football), punts and kickoff (gridiron football), kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusivel ...

, similar to the way

Dexter McCluster Dexter Marquise McCluster (born August 25, 1988) is an American former professional football player who was a running back and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL) for the Kansas City Chiefs, Tennessee Titans, and San Diego ...

had been used in previous seasons before leaving the team in the offseason. In the 2014 NFL season, Thomas rushed 14 times for 113 yards, and one touchdown, as well as catching 23 passes for 156 yards. In addition to that he returned a punt for 81 yards and a touchdown against the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...

on December 14. He ended the season with 405 punt return yards off of 34 attempts. He was also the Chiefs main kick returner, he returned 14 kicks for 428 yards. He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.

2015 season

In the 2015 offseason, Thomas was permanently switched to wide receiver. His amount of touches dropped off but he was still able to score 1 touchdown on 17 catches for 140 yards, and score 1 rushing touchdown in 9 attempts for 34 yards. On December 31, 2015, Thomas was placed on the non-football illness (NFI) list.

2016 season

Thomas made his return to the field in the 2016 season. He saw much of his role decrease, especially as a return specialist, with the emergence of rookie speedster Tyreek Hill. Thomas still got to return 15 kicks for 338 yards, but didn't return a single punt. Yet, he was still able to obtain 35 yards off of 7 catches, and 29 yards in 4 rushing attempts. With his role decreased, he emerged in a different position as a gunner on punts and kicks. He compiled 3 tackles (2 solo) for the season.

2017 season

At the beginning of the 2017 season, it looked as if Thomas' main role was kick returner. He was shortly removed from that job when he became more involved in the offense with the injury of their No. 1 receiver Chris Conley. In 16 games, Thomas had 143 yards on 14 receptions for 2 touchdowns. Those touchdowns came in back to back weeks, including a catch and run for 57 yards and a touchdown against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

on October 15. He also continued to be a gunner on special teams, racking up 2 combined tackles (1 solo). He was placed on injured reserve on January 2, 2018, with a leg injury.

2018 season

On March 14, 2018, Thomas re-signed with the Chiefs. Thomas only played in 5 games during the 2018 season due to injury. On September 9, 2018, he caught a one-yard touchdown pass in a 38–28 win over the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...

. The following week, against the

, Thomas returned a punt 48 yards in the 42–37 win. He continued as a gunner on special teams making 4 combined tackles (4 solo). He was placed on injured reserve on October 13, 2018, after suffering a fractured leg in practice.

2019 season

On August 20, 2019, Thomas re-signed with the Chiefs. He was suspended for the first game of the season for violating the NFL's policy on substance abuse, and placed on reserve/suspended on August 31. He was reinstated from suspension and the Chiefs were given a roster exemption after the regular season opener on September 9. On September 10, he was activated. In only 6 games with the Chiefs, Thomas had a very slim role in the offense with 1 rushing attempt for 4 yards, and 1 reception for 6 yards. Despite the slim offensive role, Thomas continued as a return specialist with 7 kick returns for 155 yards, and 13 punt returns for 55 yards. On October 22, 2019, he was released by the Chiefs.

Baltimore Ravens

On November 5, 2019, Thomas was signed by the

. Thomas became the Ravens primary return man for the rest of the season. In 8 regular season games with the Ravens he returned 10 kickoffs for 166 yards, and 13 punts for 93 yards. For the offense, Thomas only received 1 rushing attempt for 1 yard. Thomas also played in the Ravens Divisional Round Playoff game against the Tennessee Titans where he added 3 kick returns for 71 yards in the loss. On March 16, 2020, Thomas re-signed with the Ravens. He chose to opt-out of the 2020 NFL season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

on July 27, 2020. He was waived after the season on January 18, 2021.

BC Lions

On February 1, 2022, Thomas signed with the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

for the 2022 season. In May 2022, Thomas failed to show up to rookie training camp in Kamloops, BC. He was officially released on February 13, 2024.

References

External links

*
Oregon Ducks bioDat Momba
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, DeAnthony American football cornerbacks African-American track and field athletes American male sprinters 1993 births Living people Players of American football from Los Angeles People from Crenshaw, Los Angeles American football running backs Oregon Ducks football players Oregon Ducks men's track and field athletes Kansas City Chiefs players Baltimore Ravens players Crenshaw High School alumni 21st-century African-American sportsmen Track and field athletes from Los Angeles BC Lions players Canadian football running backs Players of Canadian football from Los Angeles 21st-century American sportsmen